Business

Between purchasing tickets, dinner, hair, makeup, nails, flowers, photography and a limousine rental, the cost of attending prom can get pricey even before the cost of a dress and the accessories are taken into account.

According to Promgirl, you can expect to spend between a few hundred and up to a few thousand for the special night.

In fact, a survey from Visa noted in 2015 that parents spend an average of $989 on their daughters and $893 on their sons to attend prom.

Dr. Laura White, a pediatrician of 10 years in Shelby County, has opened a new medical practice called Future Hope Total Health.

The practice, which opened in January, is located in the same building as her pediatrics practice, Future Hope Pediatrics, at 231 Midland Park in Shelbyville, with a staff of three, herself, her son Austin, as administrator, and her husband, Mark, as health coach and personal trainer.

Mark White said he wanted to clear up some confusion about the status of his wife’s two practices.

With the confusion surrounding the possibility of delayed tax returns, tax-filing season got off to a rocky start.

Nancy Kasey and Violeta Garner with Liberty Tax on Midland Trail in Shelbyville, confirmed that because the IRS issued a delay in releasing some refunds because of enhanced fraud protection with those claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or Additional Child Tax Credits (ACTC).

As a new statewide program consisting of an internship program between students and manufacturers takes off around the state, Shelby County has found itself on the outside looking in. But local officials are setting the ground work to get involved in the program.

“This is our third recruitment class, so the idea is, we’re growing it, and we feel like in another year or two, there will be that need to expand it out to Shelby County,” said Debbie Anderson, who heads up the Kentucky FAME Greater Louisville Chapter.

Swifty Oil Station, vacant since June 2015, has undergone still another transformation with the removal of its gas tanks this week.

Justin Phelps with Hagan Real Estate confirmed that the property, located at 1530 Midland Trail in Shelbyville, will soon be under new ownership, but said he cannot speak to the plans for the facility.

In 2016, the county broke its 3-year trend in increasing home sales, with a slight dip.

However, that picture is not completely gloomy – the total number of homes sold was down 2 percent but the number of people building new homes increased slightly, with 5 more residential building permits taken out than in 2015 for an increase of 3 percent. In addition, the average home price fell only slightly, at 2 percent.

The Shelby County Backpack Project is once again in need of food, and the latest drive to help is being held by Kentucky Farm Bureau.

Debbie Rothenburger, who is heading up the effort along with Stephanie Tucker, said that Food Check Out Week, a national movement by KFB, will be held locally Feb. 19-25.

“This food check out week, Feb. 19-25, that's when we celebrate how many weeks it takes for the average American to earn enough money to buy food for the entire year,” she said. “It's like six weeks in America.”

There hasn’t been much time yet for workers or employers to determine the effects of Kentucky’s new right to work law, which Gov. Matt Bevin signed Jan. 8, officials say, but union leaders and lawmakers share opposing views of the future repercussions.